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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/29062539">A Crafter Is Born</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/T009HopeStar/pseuds/T009HopeStar'>T009HopeStar</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>The Crafter and Builder [1]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Minecraft (Video Game)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Adventure, Exploring, Fighting Monsters, Gen, Isolation, Learning the Rules, Wilderness Survival, dog best friend</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-01-29</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-05-02</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-13 08:22:28</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>20,246</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/29062539</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/T009HopeStar/pseuds/T009HopeStar</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Alex is a stranger in a new world and she doesn't know how she got there. One minute she didn't exist, the next she's standing alone above a river in a vast, empty world with nothing but her wits to keep her alive. Does she have what it takes to survive, or will this world crush her into dust? And what exactly is this world? How come things like gravity don't work exactly like she thinks they should?</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>The Crafter and Builder [1]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/2132214</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>3</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Benchmaking</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The truth of the matter is, I don't know how I was born. Thinking back, there are no childhood memories of learning something new or making new friends. There are no parents who raised me, nor is there some home that holds long lost precious memories. As far as I can tell, one day, I just suddenly was. One minute I didn't exist, and the next I'm standing alone on a grassy hillside. Strangely, I don't remember questioning it. I didn't wonder how I got there, I just accepted that I was there. All I knew for certain, was that my name was Alex, and I had to survive.</p><p>That first place, the land where I took my first steps, first breaths, and first felt the warmth of the sun on my skin, that is the place I remember as my first home. I can still see it all so clearly. I stood on a green hillside. A tall oak tree stood at the peak, and a calm river flowed below me running from south to north. A damp swamp grew to the west, across the river. I could smell the earthy musk and see the brown mushrooms growing in the dark soil to be taller than the surrounding trees. To the north of me, across a small field where pigs and horses grazed, the grass gave way to barren sand mountains on my side of the river, while on the other side, the swamp turned to a forest so dense that no light could penetrate the leafy canopy.</p><p>From the top of the hill, I could see over the swamp and watched the trees fade into the western horizon. To the east, were rolling grassy hills that were soon encompassed by a forest that looked far less intimidating than any of the other wooded areas nearby. To the south, great gray mountains rose into the drifting clouds, which occasionally allowed me to glimpse the snow-covered peaks.</p><p>The strange situation that I found myself in didn't cause me to panic. I remember seeing my reflection in the water. I saw calm green eyes looking back at me beneath a head of orange hair collected into a ponytail. For the first time, I saw my favorite green shirt, brown pants, and black boots. It could be said that I loved the outfit so much that I've worn it nearly every day since.</p><p>I pulled the ponytail over my shoulder and played with the ends while taking in my surroundings, marveling at the sights before me. Even though I was new to life, I felt the beauty of this world was unparalleled. The only question wandering through my mind was where would I live?</p><p>My eyes landed on a small, rocky hill under one hundred meters away to the southeast. A cluster of trees covered the tiny foothill, providing ample amounts of shade, without blocking the sunlight entirely. Even in the early morning light, I could see the flicker of running water on a rocky outcropping. A cluster of lilacs bloomed beneath some of the trees, adding a splash of color and filling the air with their sweet scent, which I could smell even from my distance. In less than a second, I knew in my heart that I had found my home.</p><p>I headed for my new place and set to work. The first thing I did, was punch a tree. I couldn't tell you why I chose to do that. Instincts just told me that it had to be done, so I did. After a few punches, a piece of the tree broke off and I held it in my hands. Staring down at that block of wood, I could see all of its possibilities in my hands. I could imagine all of its crafting potential and knew that it would be the first of many. That one log would allow me to create so much more. In my nimble hands, the one log was broken down and formed into four planks, which were then combined to create my first workbench. I placed the table on the ground beside me, marveling at how a single log had been transformed into such a simple, yet elegant creation.</p><p>With my table ready, and more ideas running through my mind, I felled the rest of the tree. Some of the logs were crafted into planks, and then some of those became sticks. From there, I combined planks and sticks to form a wooden pickaxe. My first one. How the wood went through so many stages, I didn't know and I didn't ask. All I knew was that in my hands, materials could become whatever I wanted them to be.</p><p>With my pick in hand, I dug into the cliff face beside the trickle of water. I gathered block after block of cobblestone. It was slow going, cracks formed in the wooden tool with each successive swing, yet I trusted that my tool would last long enough. Once I had twenty blocks of cobble in my inventory, I returned to my crafting table and began creating a new pick with a stone blade. Once finished with that, I created a stone axe, shovel, and sword. Like with everything else up until that point, I had no idea why I created the tools I did, I just knew I needed them. The axes and shovel made sense, but the sword took me by surprise. I had yet to see anything even remotely threatening, but I made it regardless.</p><p>After my tools were finished, I created myself a furnace and placed it next to my crafting table. With a simple set of gear ready, my thoughts turned to exploration and food. A single apple had fallen from the tree, but I knew it wouldn't last me long. I explored the perimeter of my little hill. Woods stretched off to the east and south, there were open rolling hills to the north that eventually gave way to the desert. The water from the spring split when it hit the ground. One branch went westward and soaked into the grassy plain five meters away. The other fell into a large opening that dove steeply into the ground as it twisted and turned into the darkness beneath the surface of the world. I didn't dare go further than the light reached. My stomach lurched just looking into the depths. Some more exploration turned up a few more openings that led underground. Some didn't go very far, with enough light seeping into them to allow a full investigation. These I checked for anything valuable, but found nothing and quickly returned to the sunlight.</p><p>The darkness bothered me, and I couldn't' understand why. It was just a lack of light. There was nothing to worry about. Until then, the only other living creatures I'd seen had been some horses and a pig. Those weren't exactly threats. What was there to be afraid of in the dark? Images of terrifying monsters flashed through my mind, but I chalked that up to an overactive imagination. Monsters weren't real.</p><p>I figured I'd done enough exploring for the time being. I needed at least a few meals stored away, which was unfortunate for that pig I had seen earlier. This must've been the reason I crafted the sword, deep down I knew what had to happen. I ventured back to my first spot and did what needed to be done to survive as quickly as I could.</p><p>As my pork chops cooked in the furnace, a few more trees fell to my axe, and more stone was harvested from the cliff face. The stone tools proved to work better than the wooden one, but even these were breaking quickly. I'd need to find a stronger material. Still, they'd work for now and would be easy enough to replace when they broke.</p><p>With an ample supply of resources, to play with, I began experimenting with what I could craft. I created a chest, doors, fences, stairs, ladders, all sorts of other knick-knacks. With each new item crafted, my imagination ran wild with all of the possibilities. Was there any limit to what I could create? I wanted to find out, but there was something much more pressing. When I finally peeled my eyes off of my crafting table, I saw the sun sinking toward the horizon.</p><p>A pit opened in my stomach.</p><p>I wasn't prepared for my first night. My instincts told me so. Panic gripped me as I tried to figure out what to do. My cutout beneath the waterfall looked to be my most defensible position, so I quickly threw up some fences and a gate around the main opening to the north, and a door in the smaller opening to the west. I huddled in the back and waited as the sun set below the horizon and took its last bits of light with it. In the silence of the night, the only sounds were my breathing and the pounding of my heart in my ears.</p><p>What was I afraid of? It was just night. There was nothing dangerous in this world!</p><p>Not feeling the least bit tired, and not wanting to waste the night away, I convinced myself to return to the crafting table at the mouth of my tunnel. That's when a bone-chilling screech filled the air. I froze on the spot, scanning the field outside for any danger. At first, all seemed clear, then something moved. A figure crested a hill to the north. At first, my hopes rose. It was another person! I wasn't the only one. Then the figure began shambling down the hill and instinct told me that was not a friend. Closer still, something moved within the edge of my vision with a creak.</p><p>Searing pain erupted in my shoulder, knocking me back a step. I screamed in agony. An arrow protruded from my shoulder and blood seeped out onto my green shirt. Strands of hair drifted across my vision as I searched for who fired the shot. A few meters beyond my fence stood a skeleton, practically glowing in the pale moonlight. Empty eye sockets stared at me as its teeth grinned sinisterly. It held a bow in its hands and knocked another arrow, ready to fire again. I back stepped around the cave wall. Out of sight, all I could do was listen as its hollow bones clanked against one another. I prayed to Notch it wasn't coming closer.</p><p>A chuckle echoed from the door to my left. Spinning on my heel, I saw a grubby face beneath a dark, pointy hat looking through the windows in the door.</p><p>
  <em>Go away!</em>
</p><p>The narrow, unblinking eyes ignored my plea and watched me as another chuckle escaped her lips. I stood perfectly still, hoping she couldn't open the door. The figure remained in place, constantly staring, but never made a move to open the door.</p><p>Again the screech from earlier cried out, and this time I could hear the skittering of many feet. The sounds sent a chill down my spine.</p><p>I backed away from the opening until my back pressed against the stone wall. I slid to the ground, hissing in pain. The thought of removing the arrow crossed my mind only once. When it did, my hand merely brushed against the wooden shaft and the action tore a gasp from my throat. I left it alone after that.</p><p>I cowered in the back of my tunnel, my right hand pressed firmly to my left shoulder, trying to ease the pain, and waiting for the sun to return.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Time to Strike</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>After a rough first night alone, Alex decides it's time to strike back at the monsters haunting her.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>With the cold stones at my back and feet, the searing pain in my shoulder, and the grumblings of the monsters outside, I didn't sleep that entire night. I drifted in and out of consciousness for hours. At some point, the arrow in my shoulder disappeared, but an angry wound remained. It hurt like no other, but at least I could move without accidentally bumping the arrow and making things worse.</p>
<p>As morning sunlight crept across the outside world and seeped into my tunnel, I lifted my head from the stone wall. My shoulder still pulsed with pain, but it had dulled over the night. I rose to my feet and tiptoed to the opening of my tunnel as my legs groaned in protest. The witch at the door had left during the night, apparently losing interest in me, but what about the skeleton archer?</p>
<p>Peering out into the world, I didn't see anything other than a cow and two sheep grazing on the hill across from me. I stepped out fully into the light, then I heard it. Bones creaked and I dropped to the ground. Pain rushed through my shoulder, but it was worth it as the arrow harmlessly impacted against the stonewall. Staying low, I spotted the undead archer hiding in the shade of an oak tree.</p>
<p>How would I deal with it? I had a sword. In that instant, I knew the real reason for crafting it. I knew I would need to defend myself, but how to approach the skeleton? I did <em>not</em> want to take another arrow, so I needed to sneak up on it. Sliding back into the tunnel, I exited through the side door and snuck around my hill. When I got close to the tree where I'd last seen the skeleton, it was still there, staring intently at my tunnel. I smirked.</p>
<p>
  <em>You're in for a surprise.</em>
</p>
<p>I drew my sword and rushed forward. The first swing caught it off guard. It flew back a meter and spun around, drawing its bow. Before it could fire its shot, I swung again. This blow knocked it out of the shade into the sunlight. Then it began to spark. I jumped away as flames engulfed its dry bones. In a panic, the monster lowered its bow and dart to and fro. It rushed for the shade of a tree where the flames died down. Apparently, the monsters didn't get along with the sunlight. I could use that.</p>
<p>The creature glared in my direction and raised its bow. I planned on dodging its first shot, then charging it to knock it back into the light. However, I didn't get the chance. A growl emanated from a nearby tree that caused the monster to lower its bow and quake in fear. Its bones rattled against one another as a white wolf rushed at the skeleton. The two ran laps around the tree. I almost felt bad for the beast stuck in its predicament, then my shoulder ached.</p>
<p>
  <em>You deserve this.</em>
</p>
<p>The wolf finally managed to nip at an ankle bone, which sent the monster flying back into the daylight where it burst into flames before crumbling to dust. When the smoke cleared, three orbs in varying shades of green and yellow hovered over two bones where the monster once stood.</p>
<p>Having destroyed its target, the wolf wandered through the trees, showing no interest in me. With caution, I approached the items. As I drew nearer, the orbs floated toward me. Before I could even think of running, they latched onto my leg. They tickled for an instant and then disappeared. It was so strange, and yet felt normal, so I shrugged it off. After all, I didn't feel any different. The bones still sat there and they seemed important, so I picked them up. As I did, the thought of grinding them into dust crossed my mind. What use did ground-up bones have? Before I could figure it out, the wolf focused on me. I readied myself to run, but the creature didn't seem upset. Its head tilted sideways as it studied the bones in my hand.</p>
<p>
  <em>Of course, dogs like bones!</em>
</p>
<p>I offered a bone to the dog. It took the treat and devoured it in a hurry, then returned to looking at the bone still in my hand. I didn't see a point in making that powder, plus it had helped me kill skeleton. These bones were just as much his as they were mine, so I offered up the other bone. Once again, it devoured the bone faster than I could process what had happened, then it turned around and walked away.</p>
<p>
  <em>Thanks for the help.</em>
</p>
<p>I wondered if I gave it enough bones if I could befriend the creature. Before I could ponder that thought for long, my rumbling stomach told me it was time to focus on more important things, like survival. I returned to the front of my tunnel and munched on a cooked pork chop while studying the land around me. My eyes landed on the sheep. Their wool would make some nice bedding, far better than the stone floor, but how to get my hands on it? I didn't have anything to trim the wool of, other than my sword. As my breakfast settled in my stomach, I began to feel better. A lot better. Right before my eyes, the bloody hole in my shoulder sealed itself up and the tear in the fabric stitched itself back together. With a sword in hand, I felt ready to take on the world.</p>
<p>
  <em>Sorry sheep, momma needs a new bed.</em>
</p>
<p>The sheep provided more and less than I thought they would. Killing each one provided me with a block of wool and a piece of mutton each. After realizing just how important food was, this was a plus, but as I tried to make myself a place to sleep, I learned that two pieces of wool would not be enough. Three blocks would get me a bed, but there were no more sheep in sight. Great.</p>
<p>With a bed out of the question, I moved on to fixing up other aspects of my home. Hopefully, another sheep would wander by later.</p>
<p>First, I started with some landscaping. I took the saplings that I'd collected the day before while chopping trees and planted them in the field out front. Then I placed stones around the edges of the western branch of the stream so I could begin collecting the water into a pool. I stayed away from the northern branch and its dark cave. Now that I knew what lurked in the dark, I had no intention of going down there until properly equipped.</p>
<p>Next, I went to gather some of the lilacs on the eastern side of my hill to place around the fence at the opening to the tunnel. On my way, I noticed a birch tree had fallen over near a large hollow in the ground. Here, it seemed the ground had collapsed, exposing the circular cave to the sky. At the center of the circle stood a few meters thick column of rock that supported a single oak tree. Looking into the depths, I could see a vein of black spots embedded within the stone. My gut told me I needed whatever material that was.</p>
<p>After scouting out the hollow from above, and not seeing any signs of danger in the darker parts that led further underground, I carefully climbed down. Still fearing another surprise attack from a skeleton, I looked both ways before swinging my pickaxe. After a few swings, the block broke and I picked up a piece of coal. Several ideas popped into my head on just how I could use this new resource. Primarily, I could use it to make torches. With the thought of place-able light, I mined out the rest of the vein as quickly as I could. Once I had every last bit of coal I could find, I returned to my original task of picking flowers.</p>
<p>The plants took the move well and rewarded me by filling my home with their scent and adding a splash of color to my surroundings.</p>
<p>
  <em>I really need to do something about the gray walls, but this will do for now.</em>
</p>
<p>Satisfied with the ever-growing sense of hominess, I sat before my crafting table and began figuring out every possible use of coal that I could find. First, I made torches and placed several of them. Some went on my fence, a few went in my tunnel, and another one went by my side door. Their steady golden glow helped me feel safer about tonight.</p>
<p>My experimenting came to an end as the sun neared the horizon. I sat down in my yard, cooked up some mutton in the furnace, and waited for the night to come with a knot building in my stomach. Yes, this time I had light to see by, but I should have done more to make my tunnel safe. If a skeleton decided to stand at my fence line, I was willing to bet it could shoot me all the way at the back wall. I looked over my shoulder at the tunnel entrance.</p>
<p>
  <em>I could fill it up with me inside. That would keep me safe.</em>
</p>
<p>The thought sent a shiver down my spine and I quickly returned to looking into the multicolored sky.</p>
<p>
  <em>That would feel too much like being buried alive.</em>
</p>
<p>I settled on digging out a nook in the back, giving me a place to hide if things got bad. With a plan ready to go, I stood and set to work as the last rays of orange light faded to black.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Aww Man</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Alex comes face to face with the creepiest monster in her world.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>As night fell, the monsters emerged and wandered across the landscape. This time, for the most part, they kept their distance. No one stood in front of my door, or along my fence line. They avoided the light of my home, seeming to prefer to stick to the shadows.</p>
<p>I had just started to relax when I saw something new. The creature stood almost as tall as me and wandered through the shadows in silence on four stubby little legs. All of the other monsters I recognized, their names appeared in my mind without as much as a second thought. There were zombies, skeleton archers, witches, and giant spiders. However, with this thing, no name came to me, just a feeling of fear. It welled up within me and my heart raced.</p>
<p>The thing stopped in the middle of the field and its head swiveled on its torso, searching for something. It looked in my direction and my body froze up.</p>
<p>
  <em>Please don't see me.</em>
</p>
<p>It began creeping toward my fence and I grimaced.</p>
<p>
  <em>Of course, you did.</em>
</p>
<p>The thing stepped into the light of my torches, giving me a good look at it, which I realized I didn't want. The thing looked like a giant, walking pile of leaves with four legs and no arms. There was something very unsettling about its almost human appearance. The face didn't help. Its creepy face seemed stuck in a permanent scream with its dark mouth open wide and black, empty eye sockets. Somehow the skeletons had more emotion in their face than this thing. Those hollow eyes locked onto me and never blinked. They just kept boring into me. I felt like it could see right into my soul and I didn't like that. Of all the things to look at me since my appearance, this thing was the worst.</p>
<p>
  <em>Go away!</em>
</p>
<p>It didn't. Just kept standing there. At least it didn't have a bow and arrow like some of the skeletons out there. Since it didn't shoot me, I figured I could get closer to it and hit it with my sword. With my weapon ready, I crept forward and swung quickly. My blade hits its mark and the monster was sent flying back a couple of blocks with a hiss. I hoped it would leave me alone after that, but it started marching toward me again.</p>
<p>I smirked. With the fence between us and no arms on its body, only one of us could reach over and hit the other. I could handle this thing. What had I been afraid of? I readied my sword to swing again, but as the monster got closer, its body began to shake and flash. I froze, not sure what I was seeing. With each step, the flashing increased in frequency. My mind told me to run, but my legs locked up. They refused to move.</p>
<p>Too late, I heard another noise creaking behind the monstrous leaf pile. A bow groaned as it was drawn back, then twanged as it fired. The leaf pile suddenly jumped forward. I tripped over my feet and fell backward. Sitting on the grass, I watched as the head and its empty eyes turned to focus on the skeleton behind it. From the back of its head sprouted an arrow meant for me. The skeleton missed its mark and I couldn't help but giggle despite the situation. The monsters could hurt each other!</p>
<p>For its part, the skeleton seemed oblivious to its blunder. It stayed focused on me as the other monster marched towards it. I watched intently as the leaf pile's body began to vibrate and flash. The skeleton readied another arrow, one aimed in my direction. I readied to dodge out of the way but kept my eyes fixed on the scene in front of me. A sizzling sound filled the air. Then the monster exploded!</p>
<p>My heart stopped. Dirt rained from above as the creature detonated, leaving behind a crater with no trace of it or the skeleton. My hands found their way to my head and remained stuck to either side as I stared wide-eyed at the crater.</p>
<p>
  <em>That could have been me.</em>
</p>
<p>I hadn't realized just how close I came to dying. If the skeleton hadn't missed, I would have died. In a state of shock, I back-stepped into my tunnel until I bumped into the wall. From there I retreated into my little nook and waited for daylight. I wanted nothing to do with the monsters outside. Instead of facing them, I sat and listened. I listened to the monsters screeching, creaking, and groaning all night, but the noises didn't worry me as much as the silence. That creepy leaf pile hadn't made a sound until it started sizzling. By then, it was right up on the skeleton. If that had been me, and I hadn't known it was there, I would have been a goner. I would need to keep my eyes open for those things. I never wanted to have one sneak up on me.</p>
<p>Hours passed before my cave began to brighten. When it did, a new sound started echoing off the walls. Rain splattered and thudded against the earth, chilling the air and filling it with a damp, fresh scent. I rose and went to the entrance of my tunnel to stare out across the fields. To my horror, the monsters from the night still roamed the grassland. The clouds seemed to offer them enough protection from the sun to stay out during the day.</p>
<p>I glared at the roiling, gray sky. I wanted to go out and gather resources. I did not want to spend more time trapped in a hole in the cliff by monsters.</p>
<p>
  <em>I really need to build a better home for myself.</em>
</p>
<p>Rummaging through my chest revealed only a small selection of useful blocks. I had less than a stack of cobblestone, a few pieces of andesite and diorite, and several oak logs and planks. As I examined the various blocks at my disposal, I could see in my mind all of their crafting potential. The diorite and andesite could be polished up, which I did. The stone blocks looked nice, but all I could come up with was replacing a section of my walls where I had found the diorite with the polished variety.</p>
<p>No matter how hard I tried, I just couldn't imagine what I wanted my house to look like.</p>
<p>I returned the blocks to the chest and decided to turn my little nook into a full-fledged room. This way, I could go back there and be completely safe from the monsters that crept once the sun sank beneath the horizon.</p>
<p>Since I still had no idea what materials to use for the walls to make the place feel less like a cave, I focused on getting the room set up. Once finished, my room wasn't much. It met the basic definition of having four walls, a roof, and a ceiling, but that was pretty much it. Its boxy, three-block wide by four-block deep space was carved out of stone and dirt, with just a splash of andesite.</p>
<p>Setting up a birch door between the room and my tunnel helped. I could have used one of my leftover oak doors, but I didn't like the window in it. I wanted my room to feel secure, and the birch door helped do that. It also meant I now had a pair of birch doors sitting in my chest next to a pair of oak ones. I had more doors than I needed, but it felt like a waste to not make as many doors as I could from the six planks of wood, and they provided enough for three. I'd find a use for them eventually.</p>
<p>Once finished with my project, I stepped up to the mouth of my tunnel. Water still poured from the sky and dripped down the stone cliff face. I stayed under the overhang in an effort to stay dry and scanned my surroundings with a frown. There were several monsters wandering through the rain. A few more lurked amongst the trees to my right. However, the left side looked free and clear. I had a choice. I could stay inside all day, and hideout throughout the night again, or I could go out and look for that final sheep. My first option was the safest, but would also be the most tedious. The second option would be risky, and freezing. The rain would soak through my clothes in no time, and the breeze in the air carried a chill that sent shivers down my spine as I stood there, completely dry. However, the second option could also lead to a bed, and I wanted a bed.</p>
<p>With the thought of being able to get some decent rest, I made up my mind. With my stone sword in hand, I charged out my door, past the trees, and into the plains west of home. As I predicted, the water quickly soaked through my clothes and chilled me to the bone. Through narrowed eyes, I searched for anything that moved. I needed a sheep and didn't want to be caught off guard by a monster. Sure enough, a zombie lumbered down the hill, its dark eyes trained on me. I sprinted forward with my sword raised. I swung and hit it. One of its hands clawed at my arm, leaving scratches running down its length. I swung two more times, dodged its reaching hands, and swung once more. It fell to the ground and left behind two putrid pieces of flesh. I gagged as I picked them up and stashed them away. I hoped I could use them for something.</p>
<p>I continued to wander around my hill, ducking under trees, avoiding the monsters whenever I could. The scratches on my arm pulsed with pain with each beat of my heart. The rain refused to let up. Droplets trickled down every part of me. Shivers racked my body, but I refused to give up. After hours of searching, I spotted what I wanted. A white sheep poked its head over the hill and my heart swelled with excitement.</p>
<p>
  <em>Tonight, I'm be sleeping on a bed!</em>
</p>
<p>I killed the sheep and hurried back to my home to craft the bed before it got too dark. The furnace helped me dry off as it cooked up some fresh mutton and I crafted my long-awaited prize. I placed my new piece of furniture sticking out from the middle of the back wall in my room. I wrung out my hair as I stared in triumph at what I'd accomplished. I returned to the furnace for my dinner and dried off some more. Pride filled me as I thought about braving the storm and returning victorious.</p>
<p>
  <em>I have a bed!</em>
</p>
<p>When night fell, the glow of the torches guided me to my room. The sound of the rain vanished as I closed my door behind me and looked appreciatively at my accomplishment. The white sheets and mattress looked so soft and inviting sitting on its wooden frame, so I dove into comfort's warm embrace. The cold from the rain fled my body under the wool sheets. For the first time in my life, I got to sleep through the night in comfort, and not a single monster came to bother me.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Needing to Go Deeper</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>After a good night's sleep, Alex is ready for an adventure, and the caves beckon.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The next morning I woke up feeling refreshed and ready for an adventure. As I ate a breakfast of cooked mutton, I stood in my fenced-off yard and studied the world. The rain had left during the night. The angry gray clouds were replaced by softer, happier white ones drifting by in a crisp blue sky, casting their cool shadows on the ground. A pair of horses and their young foal followed closely behind as the group grazed in the field. My wolf friend roamed in the shade of the trees, hunting for another skeleton to munch on. I thought I heard the clanking of bones, but saw no sight of an undead archer. I figured if there was one, the wolf would deal with it.</p>
<p>Of all the directions I could go, one caught my attention more than the others. The dark, gaping pit near my yard. The one where the spring water dove into the earth. I knew what could await in that inky blackness, but my curiosity about what other resources could be found down there insisted I explore. My gut told me there was something worthwhile deep underground. I figured with my torches and sword, I could handle any monsters. I knew what I was facing.</p>
<p>I loaded up my pack, which up until then, wasn't even something I considered. I didn't actually have a pack or bag. There was nothing on my back, nor was there anything on my belt, and yet I could store items in both locations. I just started doing it naturally and never questioned it. The things on my belt shrunk down, I could see their miniatures along the leather. I kept my tools, torches, and an emergency apple there. Anything I didn't readily want access to, I put on my back. Before heading down, I checked my reflection in the water to see if I could see the dirt, wood, and stone I'd put on my back, but there was nothing. It had vanished into thin air, yet I could reach over my shoulder and pull out whatever I wanted. I played with my storage for a while, before simply accepting the fact that it worked, and set off on my new adventure.</p>
<p>The descent wasn't too steep, but fast enough to turn the trickling stream into a roaring cascade that sent mist flying through the air. The rocks down here were slick with moisture and made the climb all the more difficult.</p>
<p>
  <em>Be careful, Alex. Don't want to fall.</em>
</p>
<p>The thought of slipping and tumbling into the water encouraged me to be careful. I wanted to enter the darkness at my own pace. In a matter of moments, I could no longer look up and see the sky above my head. The sunlight grew dimmer and dimmer with each step I took down the spiraling cave. Soon, it was too dark to proceed, so I placed a torch on the wall. The warm light lit up the cave, revealing the water's continued descent into the depths for a few more meters before the darkness became too much around the corner. I continued to the edge of the light and placed another torch. Ahead of me, I could just make out the cave splitting into two directions to form a T. I pressed on, and at the split, the water fell a few blocks into a small pool before diverging and following both paths of the cave.</p>
<p>
  <em>Which way to go first?</em>
</p>
<p>Looking both left and right, I couldn't see very far. I listened for any of the increasingly familiar sounds of the various monsters, but couldn't hear anything over the cascade of water.</p>
<p>
  <em>Do I turn back, or keep going?</em>
</p>
<p>Looking over my shoulder, I saw how far I'd really come. I'd barely entered the cave! I couldn't go back, I'd barely poked my head inside. With a deep breath, I lowered myself down the little cliff. My feet splashed into the shallow pool and I waded to the far side and placed another torch on the wall. As the orange glow spread to the new sections of the cave, I realized some of the splashing sounds weren't coming from the falling water, but from something in the water. To my left, at the far edges of the pool, two hollow green faces stared at me as they splashed against the current. My heart stopped. I tried to back away as quickly as possible and tripped over my own feet, landing my butt solidly in the water. My gaze darted around the cave, trying to find an exit.</p>
<p>
  <em>Why didn't I mine a way out first?</em>
</p>
<p>I shielded my face and closed my eyes. I thought for sure the creepy monsters would get me, but nothing happened, despite all of the splashing. There was no explosion. No searing heatwave or chunks of stone raining down on me. I opened my eyes and saw they hadn't drawn any closer. As meager as it was, they couldn't fight the current!</p>
<p>
  <em>Oh, thank Notch!</em>
</p>
<p>I stood and drew my sword before wading toward my enemies. Once close enough, I swung at the first monster. It hissed and was knocked back into the second. I thought I'd be able to just keep hitting it until it died. However, the monster had other plans. With a hiss, it glared at me as its body quivered and flashed.</p>
<p>
  <em>It's going to blow!</em>
</p>
<p>The water fought me as I turned and ran. The soaked leaf pile exploded and sent me flying face-first into the pool. On instinct, my hands and knees found their way under my body to lift me from the water. My back burned from the explosion. My front hurt from the hard landing. Any attempt to move made things hurt worse, so I chose not to. There I remained, coughing up water and trying to catch my breath. My ponytail hung limply to one side, further down, the edges of my shirt hung into the water. The back must've been evaporated by the blast. For a long time, I just stared at my grimacing expression.</p>
<p>
  <em>Maybe coming down here wasn't a good idea. No, I can't keep hiding in my cave.</em>
</p>
<p>With lots of grunting, groaning, and hissing, I forced myself to stand. Every part of me screamed and said to stop moving, but I did it. Once standing, I removed the apple from my belt and ate it. In a few breaths, the pain went away and my outfit stitched itself back together. Despite being healed, my body didn't relax. Every muscle remained tense, ready to react at a moment's notice to whatever might come creeping out of the darkness. After several minutes of nothing, I set to work on carving a way up and out. I did not want to get stuck again.</p>
<p>Once done with the task, I again faced the decision of continuing my exploration or retreating back to the safety of my home. On the one hand, the apple was all I brought with me. If I got hurt again, I wouldn't be healing it any time soon. On the other hand, my ego was bruised. One mishap and I wanted to quit?</p>
<p>
  <em>I'm not giving up. Not yet.</em>
</p>
<p>The left path, the one that previously held the pair of walking explosions seemed to level out, while the other one angled downward. Not wanting to push things yet, I chose the left route. I proceeded with caution, placing torches as I went and keeping my eyes peeled for any sign of movement. My slow footsteps echoed through the silence within the cave. The further I got away from the pool, the staler the air became. The scent of dirt and dust lingered and made it difficult to breathe.</p>
<p>
  <em>How could anyone stand to be down here?</em>
</p>
<p>I placed another torch and saw movement ahead of me. With a squeak, something rushed at me. In a panic, I dropped to my knees, completely forgetting about the sword on my belt. Luckily, the dark, tiny little thing didn't seem interested in me at all. Taking a deep breath, I watched the bat flapping around wildly. I managed a chuckle at my expense.</p>
<p>
  <em>You nearly gave me a heart attack.</em>
</p>
<p>Shaking my head, I rose to my feet. Tan specks in the rock wall caught my attention. I mined them up excitedly and recognized the bits as iron ore. These were what I'd been looking for! My mind raced with the possibilities offered by this new resource. I could make stronger tools, shears, a bucket, and even armor.</p>
<p>The four pieces I found weren't enough for everything, but they were a start. I needed to keep exploring. I needed more.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Acquire Hardware</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Alex dives deeper into the cave and encounters plenty of dangers.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The left branch came to a dead-end but offered up five more pieces of iron ore. Retracing my steps, I returned to the pool and enjoyed the cooler, freshness the damp air provided. After that, I headed down the right branch. I barely set one torch down on this side, when I heard the creaking, which preceded the tightening of a bow. With nowhere to go and no sight of the skeleton archer in the darkness ahead, I couldn't dodge its first arrow. It struck my hip, lodging into the bone, and blinding me with pain.</p>
<p>The skeleton hobbled out of the shadows as it readied another shot. I didn't have a lot of options, so I thought on my feet. Working through the pain, I managed to place two blocks of cobblestone to hide behind, breaking the skeleton's line of sight. The next arrow thunked harmlessly against the stones but didn't deter the monster. Leaning against the new column for support, I could hear it shambling closer. I grabbed my sword and readied to swing. The minute that pale head poked out around the corner, I swung. The skeleton flew back out of sight and immediately peeked around again. I swung once more, and just like the last time, the skeleton flew back out of sight. As it peeked around a third time without its bow readied, I almost felt bad. Then my side screamed at me as I swung and I took advantage of the monster's lack of planning ahead.</p>
<p>After my fourth swing, the skeleton crumbled into dust, dropping an arrow and two bones. Careful to avoid aggravating the arrow sticking out of me, I picked up the items.</p>
<p>
  <em>You could've at least dropped the bow too.</em>
</p>
<p>I leaned back against my hastily constructed pillar and marveled at the ingenuity. I hadn't really thought of what I was doing, I just did it. The skeleton had trapped me out in the open and I put a wall between us without thinking. It saved my life. I needed to remember that strategy, and try to come up with similar solutions. The monsters weren't very smart, and it seemed I could use that to my advantage.</p>
<p>After catching my breath, I carried on into the cave as it resumed its downward spiral. I wanted more iron. The air down this branch of the tunnel remained damp and echoed with the cascading water flowing beside me. The floor and walls were damp and my torchlight reflected off of the surfaces in a thousand different spots. I might have found it beautiful, if not for the fact each flash made me think I'd run into another monster. With the arrow in my hip, my progress was slower. Each step down a block hurt as the stupid pointy stick wiggled within me. A patch of red stained my shirt and paints, but the bleeding stopped. Didn't stop the pain though. It still throbbed with each pulse of my heart. I tried to ignore it.</p>
<p>Finally, the cave leveled off into a round chamber. The stream beside me collected in the basin of this chamber, where it soaked into the stones. Across the way, I could see the dark mouth of a tunnel leading away from here. From that darkness, emerged the dark, hollow face of the creepy green monster. Its empty eyes locked onto me as it marched around the room with the intent to blow me away. I readied my sword and prepared myself to run after hitting it, when an arrow shot of the darkness, impacting my chest. The shock and pain of the blow sent me staggering to the side.</p>
<p>
  <em>Why is there always a skeleton?</em>
</p>
<p>Admittedly, there weren't a whole lot of options when it came to monsters, which I felt I should be thankful for. However, they were all bad in their own way and the skeletons always managed to surprise me from the shadows with their stupid bows.</p>
<p>The green monster's body flashed as it approached. With a groan, I swung my sword. It connected with the monster's front and sent it flying a few blocks. I stumbled away and erected another pillar of cobblestone to shelter behind. My breaths were shallow as pain coursed through me. It made it hard to focus on the sides of the pillar where I knew a face would poke out eventually. Which monster would show itself first? Most likely the green one first, though from the clanking, it sounded like the skeleton was rushing to get an angle on me. As my grip tightened on the sword handle, I tried to steady my breathing. I couldn't take both of the monsters, not in my current state. The problem was, one was a walking bomb and the other could hit me from across the room.</p>
<p>
  <em>Maybe I can use that to my advantage!</em>
</p>
<p>I knew the monsters weren't the brightest, and the archer would focus solely on me, even if something got between us. If I could get the creeper between me and the archer, the skeleton would shoot it. Then the creeper would get mad at the archer, and blow them both up. I wouldn't even have to swing my sword, but I would have to dodge some arrows. I glanced down at the two sticking out of me. It felt like the skeletons here thought I was their walking pincushion, and I did not appreciate it.</p>
<p>I didn't really like this plan, but I also didn't really have time to come up with a new one. With a deep breath, I steeled myself for what needed to be done and ignored the sharp pains that erupted as I stepped out of cover. The creeper continued to follow me as the archer drew back its bow. I skirted around the room, keeping the creeper between me and the pale marksman who took its time lining up the shot. I was running out of room to get away from the creeper. Its body flashed as a hiss echoed across the chamber. My back bumped into the stone walls and I closed my eyes, refusing to look into the empty sockets of either of the monsters. The hissing stopped when the bow twanged of its shot.</p>
<p>My eyes snapped open and found the creeper right in front of me. However, it had lost interest in me. It turned and faced its old teammate, practically poking me in the eye with the arrow sticking out of the back of its head. The monster marched back across the room with understandable frustration. Knowing what was coming, I retreated back to my pillar and waited for the inevitable explosion.</p>
<p>The cavern shook from the blast causing bits of rock and dirt to trickle down from the ceiling. Where the monsters had once stood had become a small crater with a few bones lying in it. I collected the bones and placed another torch at the entrance to this new section cave, which revealed it to be another dead end. However, parts of the wall were flecked with bits of tan mineral. I let out a sigh of relief. I couldn't take any more monsters at the moment. I needed to get out of the cave, but first, I'd be collecting that iron.</p>
<p>At a tedious and painfully slow pace, I mined the iron ore from the rock wall until I had fourteen pieces in total. With that, I began the long ascent out of the cave. My body ached, but I had succeeded.</p>
<p>
  <em>After this, I'm never coming down here again!</em>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0006"><h2>6. Cow Tipper</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Alex makes a new friend and together they explore the world a little more.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Upon reaching the surface, the first thing I did was dig into my chest and pull out the few remaining pieces of beef I had. I inhaled the meal and sighed with relief as the pain from my wounds faded. The dried blood fell from my healing skin and the tears in my clothes stitched themselves back up as best they could. The arrows remained stubbornly in place, though they didn't hurt anymore. Discovering this, and feeling a bit brave, I tried to yank them out. They refused to budge.</p>
<p>
  <em>Fine, stay there. You better disappear like the others.</em>
</p>
<p>The meal finished off the last of my food reserves and based on how helpful it could be, I needed to keep a whole lot more on me at any given time. With the concept of getting a lot of food, I set off to the east of my hill. I skirted the collapsed cave and a shiver ran down my spine. Exploring the cave outside my tunnel, which I decided to call Morkmun due to the fact it looked like a giant, dark mouth. I'd never go in there again, once had been dangerous enough. I didn't even want to imagine what horrors might be lurking in this other grotto. I kept a wary eye on the shadows, hoping no monsters would sneak out to come and get me. I'd dealt with enough horrors and pain for one day.</p>
<p>I stuck to the tree line at the edge of the woods around my hill, keeping a lookout for any cows, sheep, or pigs in the fields. I was so focused on the grasslands, I practically jumped out of my skin when I heard shuffling through the undergrowth behind me. I spun on my heel and was met by the white face of the wolf who helped me out the other day. It barked as it passed me, and I remembered the bones in my pack from the other skeletons. I pulled them out and knelt forward, holding them out to the wild pooch. Her head tilted to the side before she took the treat from my grasp. She scarfed it down and continued on her way until I held another one out. She took it, and we repeated the process three more times until suddenly the pup sat down and a red collar appeared around her neck.</p>
<p>
  <em>I guess this means you're my friend now?</em>
</p>
<p>She stared at me with happy black eyes and her tail wagged through the blades of grass behind her.</p>
<p>
  <em>You'll need a name. How about Sigrid?</em>
</p>
<p>Sigrid didn't complain, so I figured she accepted it.</p>
<p>
  <em>Come on then, let's go find something to eat.</em>
</p>
<p>I continued to follow the edge of the woods and Sigrid stayed close behind me. Sometimes she'd wander off into the trees for a little bit, but she always came bounding back to me. Every time she disappeared, I tried not to worry. I knew she'd come back, but a part of me worried she wouldn't. I really liked the idea of not being alone.</p>
<p>The woods curved south where a great green valley separated the woods around my hill from the forest further east. The valley ran from the mountains in the south to the desert in the north. Patches of blue cornflowers dotted the cool green grass. Cows and pigs grazed lazily under the bright, afternoon sky. I approached the animals, who paid me no notice. My presence didn't bother them in the slightest. I felt bad for what was about to happen, but if I wanted to survive, I needed food. So far, the only food sources I'd found were of the mooing, oinking, clucking, or baaing varieties. So, I swung at the first cow. The hit caused it to panic and run. Sigrid surprised me by chasing it down and biting at it whenever she caught up. She killed it, and two pieces of beef and a piece of leather rested on the ground where the cow had been, along with more of the yellow and green orbs. I picked up the items, the orbs tickled my legs, and then I gave Sigrid many well-deserved pats on the head.</p>
<p>
  <em>Who's a good dog? Sigrid is!</em>
</p>
<p>Sigrid barked happily and her tail wagged with excitement. Together, we set to work, roaming the field and hunting anything I could eat. We dealt with a lot of creatures, and I had more food than I'd ever had before, but it still wasn't enough. There had to be a better way to get food. We went further and further south and the mountains grew in size as we approached and a cloud of steam rose from the ground. Near the cloud, a portion of a dirt hill had fallen away into a sheer cliff. I didn't think much of it until I got closer and found a giant scar cutting through the hill and out into the field. The scar was only ten or so meters wide, but it stretched for twenty meters in either direction. The truly terrifying part came when I stepped up to its edge. Only a block in front of me, the ground gave away and dropped straight down several meters revealing a lake of lava. To my left, two waterfalls sent streams tumbling into the depths where they met with the lava and created plumes of hazy white clouds. The air within the crevice shimmered and shifted. Even at this distance, the heat from the molten earth felt unbearable. Beads of sweat formed along my brow. I didn't even want to consider what it would feel like to be down there.</p>
<p>Sigrid stood next to me and whimpered.</p>
<p>
  <em>It's okay, girl. We're definitely not going down there.</em>
</p>
<p>I ran my fingers along her head and scratched a soft spot behind her ear. She leaned into my hand as I continued to study the opposite cliffside. While the gorge terrified me, it also intrigued me. The cut exposed huge sections of earth. On the higher portions, I could see chunks of diorite and a few veins of coal. Even more tantalizing were the veins of iron I spotted, and further down, just meters above the lava, I saw traces of gold through the shimmering air. Just seeing the vein sent my mind racing.</p>
<p>
  <em>What could I make out of that material?</em>
</p>
<p>I wanted the gold but wasn't ready to go back underground again. Especially not in such an inhospitable place. One wrong step and I'd wind up swimming in liquid earth. I didn't want to give that a try. And if my fears for my safety weren't enough. I had to worry about Sigrid too. I'd just found her, and I didn't want to lose her. As we were hunting, she liked to make me nervous running along steep ledges and diving headfirst at whatever we were hunting. I didn't want her following me down there just to fall. The thought of watching her plummet into the fiery depths brought tears to my eyes.</p>
<p>Sigrid noticed this and whimpered again.</p>
<p><em>I'm all right. </em>I did my best to reassure her with plenty of pats as I shook myself and tore my gaze from the ravine. I would not be going down there.</p>
<p>I scanned our surroundings, looking for our next target. We were still on the hunt after all. There was a small pond to the left of the gorge, and there were several bits of orange along the bank of a river. They kind of looked like pumpkins. They weren't exactly what I was looking for, but they had to be edible, right?</p>
<p>Sigrid and I made our way around the ravine, taking our time as it neared the pond and the terrain narrowed to just two blocks. One wrong step on either side could lead to very different results. On my left, I could end up with wet shoes. On my right, I could wind up finding out which happened faster; falling to my death, or being cooked alive? Needless to say, I hugged the left side.</p>
<p>Sigrid did the same.</p>
<p>From this side of the ravine, I could see the little hill had hidden another pond from view. Away from the ravine and the cloud of steam, the air felt cool once again. The gentle breeze carried the moisture and scent of the pond. The world once again felt peaceful as we left that horrible scar behind. The orange bits I'd spotted were in fact pumpkins. A small patch grew along yet another river winding down from the mountains to the south. On our side of the river, the green grass flourished around the ponds. Across the way, the grass grew tall and dry, gaining a slight brown tint as it spread over the flat landscape. A few scraggly trees with thin canopies dotted the otherwise barren stretch of terrain. The only aspect of the area that appealed to me was the large herd of cows grazing there.</p>
<p>
  <em>That would be a lot of beef … but do I want to swim? Do I even know how to swim?</em>
</p>
<p>Sigrid wandered along the water's edge, sniffing at it occasionally but doing her best to keep her paws dry. If she wasn't up to a swim, then neither was I. Dealing with wet clothes didn't sound like fun at the moment, so I resumed my earlier task.</p>
<p>The pumpkins were much bigger than I had expected them to be, each a full block in size. I broke one picked it up. As I held the giant gourd in my hands, a few ideas came to mind. The first thought felt like it hit me upside the head with how obvious it was. I could make seeds out of the pumpkin!</p>
<p>
  <em>Farming! Of course! That's the perfect way to get food. Why didn't I think of that sooner, Sigrid?</em>
</p>
<p>The pup trotted over with a bark and wagged her tail, seemingly just happy I'd found a new food source. Well, sort of… I figured I could make pumpkin pie. However, I'd need sugar and an egg to do so. The egg wouldn't be too big of a deal, especially if I kept some chickens cooped up. The sugar, on the other hand, would be a different story.</p>
<p>
  <em>Where am I supposed to find sugar?</em>
</p>
<p>I had yet to come across anything that could even feasibly be turned into sugar. I looked to my companion for help, but once again she didn't have much offer other than a goofy grin. I shrugged and put the gourd in my pack before grabbing the rest. This was a start.</p>
<p>
  <em>I wonder what other crops I can grow.</em>
</p>
<p>I continued to think about that as we headed back. A part of me knew there had to be other crops out there, despite the fact I hadn't seen any yet. Over the course of the walk back, I figured I'd just have to keep on exploring. The prospect didn't seem too bad when I had a companion. The sun was just starting to set by the time home came into view. It lit the sky ablaze in a brilliant orange that silhouetted my hillside. The sight took my breath away and warmed my heart.</p>
<p>
  <em>Welcome to your new home, Sigrid!</em>
</p>
<p>Of course, she'd been living in the woods next to me, but now my tunnel-like home was her home too. It was a big deal. Even she acknowledged that fact by barking.</p>
<p>I glanced over my shoulder at her, a smile on my face. It faltered in an instant when I saw her ears shift and heard the growl in her throat. I whipped back around to see the skeleton emerge from behind a tree. It pulled back its bow and I bolted for the nearest tree. The first shot impacted into the bark, just missing me. I readied my stone sword, which had gained several cracks in its blade over the day.</p>
<p>
  <em>Why didn't I make an iron one earlier?</em>
</p>
<p>I glanced at Sigrid. Her ears and eyes were trained on the skeleton, but she awaited my first move. Knowing she had my back gave me confidence. I rushed from behind my cover and charged at the monster, my dog right behind me. The archer wasn't prepared for the first hit, and it definitely wasn't prepared for the bite on its ankle. The minute Sigrid let go, the monster turned and fled with a brand new white shadow chasing after it. The monster wove through the woods with Sigrid in hot pursuit. I hurried to cut in front of the pair and took another swing at the skeleton. The surprise attack sent it stumbling back into Sigrid's waiting jaws, which bit hard, causing the monster to crumble into dust. Laying in its wake were the usual green and yellow orbs, which immediately swarmed into my legs. However, what really caught my attention was the pair of arrows and the bow.</p>
<p>
  <em>Finally!</em>
</p>
<p>I picked up the bow with glee. It wasn't in the best condition, several cracks laced the wood, but it was something. With it, I could fight the skeletons at their own game. I just needed some arrows, if only I knew how to make them. I knew they needed sticks for the shaft and chicken feathers would work perfectly for the tail, but there was something else for the arrowhead itself. Something black and sharp that I hadn't found yet. I shrugged and put the bow on my belt. Arrows were a problem for another day. The day had started off rough with my misadventures in Morkmun, but the afternoon had turned things around. I had a good supply of food, I'd found a bow, and it was all thanks to my new companion.</p>
<p>
  <em>You are the best dog ever!</em>
</p>
<p>Sigrid barked happily and trotted along beside me back to our home where I cooked up the meat we gathered. With my food being prepared, I harvested some pumpkin seeds and tried to plant them in my small yard. However, they didn't seem to take by just putting them on the grass. Next, I tried placing them in dirt, but still, nothing happened. I didn't dare venture out into the darkening world to try other surfaces.</p>
<p>
  <em>I'm missing something, I have to be. Any ideas?</em>
</p>
<p>I looked to Sigrid for advice, but she said nothing as she watched me from her spot in the yard. With a huff, I gave up the experiments for the night and sat next to her in the grass. I ran a hand through the soft white fur along her belly as I stared into the flaming sunset. Sigrid lay her head in my lap and let out a content sigh as my face twisted in thought.</p>
<p>
  <em>What am I missing? Why won't the seeds grow?</em>
</p>
<p>I pondered the problem as stars started to dot the sky. The night still terrified me, but having Sigrid by my side made me feel infinitely safer. If I had to face anything, she'd be right there with me, helping me out. We sat there in quiet content until I counted ten monsters out in the field. I decided to call it a day. Sigrid followed me into my room and settled herself down at the foot of my bed as I got comfortable beneath my sheets.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0007"><h2>7. Time to Farm</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Alex looks into ways to make more food.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The next morning, I rose bright and early, ready to face the day. First, I put my iron ore into the furnace while berating myself for not doing so yesterday. The thought of getting food had completely distracted me from my prized new materials. Once the ore smelted down into ingots, I removed it from the furnace and considered all of the things I could make. I could make new tools, which would be nice. The stone ones were clunky and breaking fast. Armor was another possibility. It'd help keep me safe from monsters. Then there were a few random items like a bucket, a cauldron, and iron bars. As much as I wanted to make everything, I just didn't have enough to do so. Fourteen ingots wouldn't even get me a full suit of armor. I settled with a new set of tools: a sword, pick, shovel, and an axe, using up nine of my fourteen pieces.</p>
<p>The remaining five pieces got crafted into a helmet. The cool metal slipped onto my head and felt surprisingly lighter than I expected. With all the iron in it, I thought it would weigh a lot more, but it felt like nothing was there at all. I had to check my reflection in the water outside to make sure it was actually there, and it was. I put the stone tools in my chest and proudly examined their replacements. The iron tools gleamed in the morning light and they looked much sturdier than their predecessors.</p>
<p>Satisfied with my new equipment, Sigrid and I went into the field to work on my goals for the day. I had two: plant the pumpkin seeds and build a chicken coop. At the moment, I couldn't decide which one would be easier. I still didn't know what the pumpkin seeds wanted, so I decided to start with the chicken coop. All I had to do was build a pen. That would be easy!</p>
<p>I decided on a spot on the western side of my hill near the side door. This way it would be close, but not too close. I cleared some of the trees in the area to create some extra room and collect wood for the fences. During this time, I made several trips back and forth from the tunnel to craft fences, and to the spot where I was building the coop. I quickly grew tired of ascending the three-block height difference from the field to my tunnel, so I laid down some cobblestone steps to make the short climb up the hill easier.</p>
<p>Meanwhile, Sigrid stayed close by but wandered the woods on this side of the hill and basically made herself comfortable. She rolled in the grass, sniffed at trees, and splashed through the stream. Every once in awhile she'd bark to let me know she was still there.</p>
<p>As the sun neared its noonday height, I stood before my latest creation with my head in my hands. When I decided I wanted to build a chicken coop, I don't know what I had in mind when I started. It definitely wasn't what I ended up with. Building still continued to confound me. Just like with my room, I had no idea what I wanted the coop to look like. I had hoped it would look like more than a five by six box made of fences on a slope. Building didn't give me the same sense of pride and joy as I got after crafting my new tools.</p>
<p>Sigrid trotted over and offered a reassuring bark.</p>
<p>
  <em>Thanks, girl.</em>
</p>
<p>I reached over and scratched her head a couple of times with a sigh. This wasn't what I'd envisioned, but it would keep the chickens in. Next, I just needed to find some.</p>
<p>
  <em>Come on, let's go find some chickens to relocate.</em>
</p>
<p>Sigrid and I wandered through the field, keeping our eyes open for any signs of white and listening for any clucking. After a little while, we found two pecking away at a clump of grass. I approached with caution, but the chickens didn't seem to fear me. They didn't listen to me either. No amount of coaxing or pushing could get them to willingly go toward home. I hit one out of frustration, which turned out to be a terrible idea. The act of aggression sent the bird into a panic and caused Sigrid to hunt it down. I tried to stop her, but she was just too good. The poor chicken never stood a chance.</p>
<p>I groaned as I picked up the bit of meat and the single feather. My faithful companion looked so proud of herself. I didn't have the heart to yell at her. I caused the whole thing anyway. By hitting the chicken, I signaled we were hunting, even though I hadn't intended to. Still, my fault.</p>
<p>If the sight of watching its companion get slaughtered upset the remaining chicken, it didn't show it. The bird just clucked away, wandering through the grass and occasionally pecking at the ground.</p>
<p>
  <em>What will it take to get you to follow me?</em>
</p>
<p>The chicken didn't answer.</p>
<p>
  <em>Why is this so difficult?</em>
</p>
<p>My gut insisted this shouldn't be as difficult as it was turning out to be, yet I had no idea how to get this chicken into the pen other than just waiting for it to randomly make the decision. I didn't feel like waiting an eternity for a chicken to wander in the right direction.</p>
<p>
  <em>Farming is dumb and I hate it!</em>
</p>
<p>I took my frustrations out on the nearest clump of grass. It shattered into bits and a cluster of six green seeds remained in its wake. My head cocked to the side as I studied the item.</p>
<p>
  <em>Well, at least I found something new, though I probably won't be able to plant these either.</em>
</p>
<p>I picked up the seeds, and something surprising happened. Suddenly the chicken cared about me. It's black, beady little eyes locked on to me, or more precisely, the seeds in my hand.</p>
<p>
  <em>Oh, so you want these?</em>
</p>
<p>I moved the seeds all around and the chicken never even blinked as it tracked them. A grin spread across my face as I took a few steps back and the chicken hurried to keep up. With bait in hand, I led the chicken across the field back to my pen, along the way, we ran into another chicken, who like the first, followed the seeds with hungry little eyes. I lead the pair to the pen, opened the gate, and stepped inside. The chickens didn't even think twice about following me into the fence. The only trouble they caused was trying to walk over each other to be the first inside. They soon sorted it out and were captured in no time.</p>
<p>I quickly exited and closed the gate behind me. The chickens seemed only mildly confused about the disappearance of the seeds. They simply returned to their aimless wandering, though in a much more confined space. I felt a little bad, so I offered the seeds to one of the birds. I didn't know how to plant them anyway and if they came from grass, I could probably get more.</p>
<p>The lucky chicken quickly scarfed them down, and then hearts began to float off the bird.</p>
<p>
  <em>What the heck?</em>
</p>
<p>I waited for something to come from the odd occurrence, but nothing did. After a while, the hearts went away and the chicken seemed none the wiser. This needed to be investigated further, and I needed more seeds, so I wandered the field, breaking every bit of grass I came across. When I had ten seeds, I returned to the coop and offered them up to the chickens. They each ate some seeds, hearts began to fly, and they began pushing their faces against one another. They only stopped once a baby chick appeared between them along with some more of the green and yellow orbs.</p>
<p><em>Oh. </em>I looked away, slightly embarrassed over what I'd just watched. <em>So that's what the hearts meant.</em></p>
<p>The orbs tickled at my legs as the new family became acquainted with their home with plenty of clucks and cheeps. I mentally checked it off my to-do list, now onto figuring out how to plant the pumpkins, and these new seeds too. With the sun high overhead, I searched the field, trying to plant the seeds on every surface I saw, no matter how weird it seemed. I figured the seeds wouldn't take to leaves, but I had to try. Just to be sure. After several failed attempts, I huffed and sat on the ground beneath a tree. Sigrid planted herself down next to me and watched some sheep grazing a few meters off.</p>
<p>I was missing something. I had to be. Maybe I was looking at the wrong thing. Maybe the ground wasn't the problem, but I was missing some tool. I ran through every possible crafting recipe I could think of, and that's when I saw it. I was missing a tool! When I made my first set of stone tools, there were five tools I could craft, but I only made four. At the time, I hadn't understood what the fifth tool could be, but its name suddenly came to my mind. A hoe. That's what I needed to plant the seeds!</p>
<p>I jumped to my feet and raced back to the tunnel with Sigrid hot on my heels, barking excitedly. I stood before my crafting table and used two pieces of cobblestone to create a hoe.</p>
<p>
  <em>This is it, Sigrid!</em>
</p>
<p>I hurried outside and picked a spot near the stream. While I didn't know a lot about farming, I knew plants needed water. Using the hoe on the grass resulted in it converting into light brown tilled soil, within seconds, the soil grew damp from the nearby water. With anticipation, I touched the pumpkin seeds to the patch of soil, and immediately they disappeared from my hand, leaving a tiny green stem in the ground.</p>
<p>
  <em>I did it!</em>
</p>
<p>I jumped for joy with my hands in the air. Sigrid lifted her head back and howled to the sky. After my celebration, I tilled up some more spots and planted three more pumpkins and the remaining seven grass seeds. I didn't know what they'd grow into, but I wanted to find out.</p>
<p>As I ate dinner, I studied my home with pride. I had seeds growing, a family of chickens in a 'coop,' and a faithful canine companion. I was a farmer.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0008"><h2>8. Adventuring Time</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The next few days were spent at home fixing up my tunnel and out in the field hunting for more food. I dug further back into the hill and added another room next to mine for storage. The same size as my room, three blocks wide by four blocks deep, the new addition held multiple chests for organization. They allowed me to keep my inventory pretty clear and still be able to find the things I needed when I needed them. I even used one of my leftover oak doors to seal off the room.</p>
<p>Sigrid and I explored the fields every day, hunting for whatever we could find. The crops were slow to grow and weren't supplying enough food to replace the need to hunt. I considered making more pens for the other animals, but they weren't as interested in seeds as the chickens were. Luring them into the corrals would be next to impossible and without something to feed them, and even then I wouldn't be able to convince them to breed. Until I figured out what each animal wanted for food, I'd stick to hunting them.</p>
<p>Meanwhile, the chickens were doing well, they laid the occasional egg and showed no signs of hating their coop, which I would make into an official coop eventually, once I figured out what I wanted it to look like.</p>
<p>Frustratingly, I couldn't come up with anything. It drove me nuts. I wanted to build things, but I had no idea where to start or what materials to use. Building didn't feel as easy for me as crafting did. When I held a material in my hand, I just knew what I could make out of it if a sat in front of a crafting table. That three-by-three grid felt so easy to understand and grasp. Meanwhile, the near-endless possibilities of building rendered me catatonic. I could build anything I wanted, but any time I tried, I came up with utterly basic constructions.</p>
<p>I beautified my crafting area by placing my crafting table and furnace next to each other in an alcove near the front of my tunnel. Then I cooked up some cobblestone and then cooked the stone again to get smooth stone. I placed those as the floor in front of my workstation from one side of the tunnel to the other. The blocks had a nice light color and their tile-like appearance did help make that area of the tunnel feel more like a home and less like a tunnel carved out of rock, but I didn't know if I liked it enough to do the whole floor. What if I did the whole thing and then decided I didn't care for the look?</p>
<p>I hated it, so I avoided large projects and stuck to simple ones, like pens, stairs, tunnels, and box rooms. Those I could handle, even if they didn't look great. At least they worked.</p>
<p>The pumpkin seeds grew into vines and once they did, they occasionally sprouted a full pumpkin next to them. I harvested the pumpkins whenever they showed up. I kept some stashed away in storage in case I ever found sugar to make pies. The others, I turned into jack-o'-lanterns which were then placed around my hill to help keep everything lit. With each passing night, fewer monsters roamed near my home, making me feel a whole lot safer than I had my first night.</p>
<p>The grass seeds sprouted into shoots of, unsurprisingly, grass, which grew taller each day. I was disappointed with them until they turned into a calm, golden color. I assumed this meant they were ready to harvest, and happily discovered they were wheat seeds, and I now had several bushels of wheat. At the moment, I could just make bread, but I could also make cookies and a cake with the right ingredients. I could also make bales of hay, though I saw no reason for that. The food seemed infinitely more important.</p>
<p>With each passing day, the urge to explore grew more and more. Each time I went out, I wandered a litter further away. After a few days of staying close to home, I'd explored every block of the field around my home. Despite what happened in Morkmun, I couldn't help but feel like going on another adventure. However, this time I would stay above ground and bring plenty of food, just in case Sigrid or I got hurt. After a stray arrow managed to hit her one night, I learned feeding her helped her heal just like it did me and that she used her tail to tell me how hurt she was. The higher the tail, the healthier. She only seemed to like meat. It was the only food group that got her attention. What came as a big, disgusting surprise was she even liked the rotten flesh dropped by the zombies. Her head always cocked sideways whenever she saw the stuff in my hands. I gave it to her once out of curiosity, and she scarfed it down without any signs of discomfort or revulsion.</p>
<p>Honestly, her eating the stuff grossed me out more than it did her.</p>
<p>So, with plenty of food in my pack, we set off to the north where the plains met the desert. Once while hunting, I noticed a small structure on the side of one of the sandy mountains. I wanted to find out what it was. Up until this point, I hadn't really set foot in the desert. The few times I had, the sand shifted and gave way beneath my feet, so I tended to just stay away from it, preferring the more solid footing the grass provided.</p>
<p>I took my first gentle steps into this part of the world. The sand moved beneath my feet but didn't give way completely. It was just very unstable. Walking across it took some getting used to, but it wasn't that bad. The worst part about the desert was the heat. The air quickly dried and warmed up after leaving the grass behind. Objects in the distance shimmered through the heat. Sigrid very quickly lost her adventuring spirit. She slowed down and stuck closer to me, panting the whole time.</p>
<p>
  <em>Don't worry, girl. We're not going too far.</em>
</p>
<p>The structure wasn't far into the desert at all, just up the nearest hill. The thing was small, only a few blocks tall and wide, with an opening in the center. Its beige coloring helped it blend into the sand around it, making it difficult to see, which was why I took so long to notice it. I must've walked along the desert border a dozen times at this point and had only just spotted it the other day.</p>
<p>We climbed the mountain, and the sand got everywhere. It slipped beneath my clothes and collected in my boots. It burned and rubbed wherever it touched. I really didn't like it, but I kept going. So far, this was going better than my trip into Morkmun. After all, I hadn't been blown up or shot at. I considered this a win despite the sticky sweat and irritating sand.</p>
<p>The short climb brought us to a well made from sandstone. A single block of cool blue water rested in its center, where Sigrid lapped at it. I couldn't blame her. I moved around her, knelt down, and washed the perspiration from my face. After that, I rubbed the back of my neck with a wet hand and felt the heat's grip on me weaken. While this was a very nice well, I'd been hoping for something more exciting. Something that warranted wandering out into the desert like this.</p>
<p>I stood and took in my surroundings from the higher vantage. To the south, I could still see home. To the east, the desert stretched off to the horizon. The west simply led further up the mountain. To the north, I had to do a double-take. The desert continued on until it climbed a hill to meet the sky. There, I couldn't be sure due to how the air rippled and wavered, but it looked like there were buildings.</p>
<p>
  <em>Is that a mirage?</em>
</p>
<p>They couldn't be real, could they? I'd been alone for almost two weeks and hadn't seen anyone else other than animals and monsters. I'd just assumed I was alone. But maybe I wasn't.</p>
<p>
  <em>Sigrid, do you see the buildings too?</em>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0009"><h2>9. The Haggler</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Alex and Sigrid discover a village.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>My eyes remained fixed on the distant, shimmering buildings for several minutes. I blinked multiple times, expecting the structures to just vanish. I even looked away and back again. However, they stayed. Since they didn't fade away, I assumed they were real.</p>
<p>It would be a long walk across the sand, but we had to go there. Someone had to have built those, and I wanted to find out who.</p>
<p>
  <em>Come on, Sigrid!</em>
</p>
<p>Sigrid lapped once more at the water before following me down the north side of the hill.</p>
<p>The same sun that felt so warm and kind back home beat down on us with a harshness I never imagined possible. Sweat dripped from me with each step and Sigrid panted away beside me. I felt bad for my pup. Her fur must be making the trek super uncomfortable. My clothes, namely the boots and pants, were awfully warm. Step by step, the buildings came into focus, and there were more of them. It was a whole village, and I could see specks moving to and fro among the sand-colored buildings.</p>
<p>I looked at Sigrid with a growing smile. <em>We're not alone!</em></p>
<p>She barked in response and we quickened our pace toward the village built around, and on, a sandy hill. A dozen sandstone buildings made up the village. Most were small squares with flat roofs, a few were rectangles with angled roofs, and one was even 'L' shaped. Only one building stood out from the others' sandy color scheme, and it was a gray cobblestone building on top of the hill. The inhabitants of the town were strange-looking people with tall, bald heads, unibrows, bright green eyes, and giant noses hanging over their flat mouths. Each wore ankle-length robes. A few were white, one was purple, and the rest were brown. The sleeves hid their arms and they all had their arms crossed in front of them with one sleeve tucked into the other. It almost made it look like they had no hands at all, and that their arms just formed a loop.</p>
<p>I walked up to one in a brown robe and introduced myself. <em>Hello, I'm Alex, and this is Sigrid!</em></p>
<p>"Hmmm," He responded, then wandered off. I thought that was a bit odd but figured maybe he was just rude. I spoke to another one and got a similar response. None of them seemed to have any interest in talking to me. They just wandered around their town, humming and sighing occasionally with the sounds echoing out of their giant noses. I couldn't help but feel disappointed by this. I'd been alone for weeks and I finally find other people, and they wouldn't even talk to me. I frowned and looked to Sigrid. She barked excitedly, and it felt like she was telling me not to give up just yet.</p>
<p>Listening to my dog, I walked up to a third person, this one wearing a white robe, and forced him to look at me.</p>
<p>"Huh," he said. But it sounded like so much more. There was something within the nasally sound I understood. If I gave him twenty-four pieces of paper, he'd give me a 'green shiny.' I was curious as to what a green shiny was, but I didn't have any paper to offer. However, that wasn't the only thing he was interested in. If I gave him a book and eight green shinies, he'd give me an enchanted level one efficiency book. I had no idea what that was. I didn't even know what an enchanted book would do. Why did a book need to be efficient? Would it make me more efficient?</p>
<p>
  <em>No, thank you.</em>
</p>
<p>I backed away from the person, who didn't seem to mind I hadn't traded with him. I wanted to, but I didn't have what he wanted.</p>
<p>I looked around the village at all of the people, and a thought crossed my mind. <em>Does everyone want to trade?</em></p>
<p>I spent the next few minutes moving from person to person, seeing if they wanted to trade as well. They did. Each villager wanted to buy and sell something, but they all varied on what those things were. The only thing they shared in common was the trades all involved green shinies. Most wanted things I didn't have enough of to trade, like coal and string. A few wanted things I didn't know about, like carrots and potatoes. However, I noticed they had two plots of farmland growing the crops.</p>
<p>I investigated them, and one plot had short green plants with orange roots just barely visible at their base. The other group had taller plants with beige bases. Most of the plants in these plots looked fully grown. To test that theory, I broke one of the carrot plots, and three orange roots landed on the ground. I expected some of the villagers to get upset by this action, but they didn't seem to care. No one even looked my way.</p>
<p>I looked to Sigrid wondering what I should do. I wanted to harvest these crops and get some seeds so I could plant some back home, but these didn't belong to me. On the other hand, no one seemed to mind.</p>
<p>
  <em>What do I do, Girl?</em>
</p>
<p>Sigrid remained quiet for a moment, seemingly thinking my conundrum over before she barked happily. Maybe it was wishful thinking on my part, but I felt she said I should take the crops.</p>
<p>I held off on harvesting for the moment and instead checked out the buildings. Sandstone seemed to be the primary material of the homes. Some of it looked as rough as the stuff in the cliffs towering over the village. Other blocks had been polished smooth, giving the stone a more organized look. Some homes had walls made of a hard, orange stone I had yet to find. I couldn't tell what it was without picking it up, but I figured the villagers wouldn't like me tearing apart their homes. What really caught my attention about the structures was they had glass for windows. I only wondered about how to make glass for a second before it came to me.</p>
<p>
  <em>Of course! I have to cook sand! Why didn't I think of that sooner? Probably because I don't like building.</em>
</p>
<p>I put the idea to the side, knowing if I ever needed to make some windows back home, I'd know just what to do. I continued to stroll around checking out the place, wondering what was inside some of the structures. After witnessing several different villagers enter and exit several different buildings without much rhyme or reason and without repercussion, my curiosity got the better of me. I stepped inside one building and just like with everything else I did here, no one cared. This was one of the largest buildings, a rectangle with an angular roof. On the inside were several bookshelves hanging from the ceiling and a table and two chairs beneath them.</p>
<p>
  <em>Maybe I can learn something useful. Do I even know how to read?</em>
</p>
<p>I never got an answer to that question because no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't actually remove any of the colorful books from the shelves.</p>
<p>
  <em>Well, that's disappointing.</em>
</p>
<p>I headed back out and explored every other house in town. Most weren't as exciting as the first one. They were all empty. One had a smooth stone counter and pen out back. The building that was the most exciting was at the top of the hill. Getting up there proved to be a bit of a challenge. There was evidence of a gravel path, but not a good one. The road just went straight up the side of the cliff, making it impossible to traverse. I got the feeling the people of this village weren't the smartest around. Even if they had managed to build better homes than I had. At least I had a bed.</p>
<p>Sigrid and I scrambled up the hill to the cobblestone building and I was surprised to find a small pool of lava contained within the stones next to a pair of furnaces. I shielded my eyes from the heat of the molten rock.</p>
<p>
  <em>How can anyone work near this stuff?</em>
</p>
<p>Sigrid panted next to me as we walked past the dangerous heat source and into the shade of the stone building. The rock wall offered some relief from the lava, but I could still hear it bubbling just outside. Like the other buildings, this one's interior was pretty barren. There were a table and a pair of chairs in one corner. The most exciting thing was tucked away into the shadows at the back of the dimly lit building. A chest.</p>
<p>I scanned my surroundings. No one was around, the climb up the hill appeared to be too much for the villagers. Even if they were here, I doubted they'd mind if I looked inside. All they seemed to care about was trading for green shinies. I lifted the lid off the chest and was shocked to find three pristine iron tools. A pick and two shovels!</p>
<p>My hand twitched as I contemplated taking them. They were so valuable! Going down into the earth to get iron was dangerous. I didn't want to do it again. However, I also didn't want to steal these from the villager who made them. It felt wrong, but letting them go to waste in this chest felt wrong as well. They were pristine! I could tell by their condition they had never once been used. Who would make such splendid tools and never use them?</p>
<p>
  <em>Probably the same people who grow crops but don't harvest them.</em>
</p>
<p>At that moment, I decided to take the tools, and harvest the fields. If anyone complained, I'd happily return the items, but I doubted that would happen. These people weren't much for conversations. All they did was wander around and hum disapprovingly through their giant noses. At least with the crops, I could trade them to the villagers for whatever a green shiny was. Then it wouldn't be like I was taking them, it would be like they were paying me to work for them, and I could keep whatever was leftover as a bonus. So with new tools in my pack, Sigrid and I climbed down the hill and I set to work harvesting the fields. I worked my way through the carrots, picking all of them up, but I didn't find a single seed.</p>
<p>
  <em>How am I supposed to plant more of these?</em>
</p>
<p>I looked to the passing villagers for help, but, unsurprisingly, they didn't offer anything useful. With a sigh, I left a few carrots where they were and moved on to the potatoes, where I got similar results. As I neared the final few plants, I hesitated. If I broke them and didn't get any seeds, would this be the end of all of the crops?</p>
<p><em>Maybe I'm missing something again. </em>I looked to Sigrid for help, and she at least had the decency to acknowledge my silent question with a head tilt and a tail wag.</p>
<p><em>Let's see. These crops aren't like pumpkins and wheat. They're roots. Maybe I just…. </em>I lowered a potato to the tilled ground and it took root in the soil, creating a new plant.</p>
<p>
  <em>There!</em>
</p>
<p>With that knowledge in hand, I harvested the rest of the fields and took the bounty of carrots to the villager who wanted them. It took a while to find the right one, but when I did, he took them and gave me a green shiny, which turned out to be an emerald. It was a beautiful gemstone that sparkled in the sunlight. However, as I held it in my hands, the only thing I could think to make out of it was a block of emeralds. It'd probably look stunning, but I wasn't really looking for building materials at the moment.</p>
<p>
  <em>Oh well, I guess I can use it for trading some other time.</em>
</p>
<p>The villager now also wanted pumpkins for another green shiny. I had those, just not with me. I would have to bring some by another day. It was getting late. The sun was already creeping toward the horizon, meaning Sigrid and I would have to race across the desert to be home before nightfall.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0010"><h2>10. P(l)ot Planter</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Alex decides it's time for a more reliable food source.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Sigrid and I raced across the desert and made it home just as the first monsters emerged from hiding. The following morning, I set to work on planting my new crops and I wanted to establish some fields like they had in the village so I could grow lots of carrots and potatoes without them being scattered all over the place like my pumpkins were. Plus, they'd be easier to harvest too.</p>
<p>Since building still wasn't my forte, I decided to copy the designs I'd seen in the village for raised fields, but on a smaller scale. I'd make two plots, half the size of the ones in the village, each one with enough room to grow sixteen plants. One plot would be for carrots and would go just outside my yard, to the west of Morkmun, and the other plot would be for the potatoes on the east side of that terrible pit. I hoped placing good things around it would make it so looking into its gaping mouth wouldn't terrify me as much. It seemed unlikely, but it was worth a shot.</p>
<p>I set to work building the carrot plot first. Copying the design I'd seen in the village, I quickly learned how inefficient it was to build something out of oak logs. I kept having to cut down and replant the trees around my home to get enough materials.</p>
<p>
  <em>Why use oak logs when you can get four planks per log?</em>
</p>
<p>I wondered who would build something like that and then remembered what the villagers were like. They weren't the sharpest picks in the chest. Couple that with their near-religious obsession with the emeralds and it all made sense. They didn't even tend to their own fields!</p>
<p>Once the oak log frames were in place, I diverted some of the stream into channels to provide the water for the plots. Then I used some oak slabs to build little bridges across the waterways so I wouldn't have to wade through them to tend to my fields. From there, I grabbed my hoe tilled the soil, and planted the few vegetables I had. There weren't enough to fill the respective fields, but I figured they'd be full in time with enough harvests.</p>
<p>
  <em>Just means we'll be sticking to hunting for a little while longer, right Girl?</em>
</p>
<p>Sigrid barked excitedly. She loved hunting. With my farm work done for the day, I figured it was best not to keep her waiting. Together, we set out to wrangle up some more food.</p>
<p>Over the next few days, I tended to my crops and hunted through the fields with Sigrid. With each passing day, I had more and more potatoes and carrots growing until both plots were completely filled with their respective crop. There were only a few setbacks thanks to some monsters. One night, just before I went to bed, I noticed a pair of zombies nearing my carrots. They spotted me, but I didn't really worry about it with the fence between us. The problem was, they made a beeline straight for me, and dropped from the small hill my carrot farm cut through. They landed on the carrots, with each zombie squashing a plant and ruining the soil.</p>
<p>
  <em>Oh, no you didn't!</em>
</p>
<p>Sigrid and I rushed out the gate to deal with the pests and ended up damaging a few more crops in the ensuing fight. Afterward, I replaced the plants and dug up the hillsides near my farms so no one else would be destroying my crops.</p>
<p>Meanwhile, the daily hunting trips proved to be erratic with their results at best. Some days we found plenty of food, and other days, things were sparse. I couldn't help but wonder where the animals came from in the first place. From what I could tell, they weren't migrating from anywhere. They seemed to just appear in the same way the monsters did each night. As weird as it was, it meant I didn't have to worry about overhunting the area. Sigrid and I rarely had to leave the plains to find food. While I could rely on always eventually finding animals, when they appeared was sporadic at best.</p>
<p>The only animals I could consistently rely on were the chickens. Every morning I fed them any leftover wheat seeds from farming and bred new chickens. In the evening, if hunting had gone poorly, I'd thin the flock a little, always leaving some for breeding the next day. It worked better than the hunting, and so I made it my mission to gather up more animals to raise.</p>
<p>I created a big pen, eight blocks by nine, near the chicken 'coop' and I planned on putting whatever animal I first figured out how to lure in it. Once the pen was ready, I headed out with wheat, carrots, and potatoes at the ready. Today proved to be another slow day for hunting. We couldn't find anything other than chickens and horses. We picked up the chickens when we found them and left the horses alone. They didn't provide any food, and they had a terrible scream when they died. We accidentally killed one once, and the sound still haunted my dreams and sent a shiver down my spine. Meanwhile, once again, the thing that scarred me didn't seem to bother Sigrid. I never saw her lose any sleep over the noise, and she caused it!</p>
<p>Still, I loved her. She kept me company, helped keep me safe, and helped keep me fed. I didn't know what I would do without her. She made even this trip fun. I loved watching her bound across the field, sniffing at random clumps of grass, then rushing off to some other spot with a giant smile on her face. Every once in a while she'd bark and come running up to me with her tail wagging excitedly. I'd give her some pats on the head, or a few scratches behind the ear, and then she'd hurry off once more.</p>
<p>It was adorable!</p>
<p>After hours of what Sigrid would likely describe as frolicking through the fields, we stumbled upon a family of three cows.</p>
<p>
  <em>Well, hello there. We've been looking for you all over. Want to come live with us?</em>
</p>
<p>One of them mooed in response, and I interpreted it as a yes, despite their unwillingness to move without bait. Of the three crops I'd brought with me, my gut told me the wheat would be my bait of choice. Sure enough, the minute they saw the wheat in my hands, they rushed forward. When the chickens had done this, it looked cute. They were so small and harmless. However, once three cows twice the size of me ran in my direction, I panicked. Thinking they would trample me as payback for all the cows we'd killed over the last few weeks, I shoved the wheat back onto my belt where they wouldn't see it. The cows immediately lost interest and returned to grazing.</p>
<p>Sigrid tilted her head as she looked at me.</p>
<p>
  <em>Oh, don't give me that. That was scary, okay?</em>
</p>
<p>I took a moment to calm my nerves.</p>
<p>
  <em>They're just cows. They can't hurt you. Probably. And they aren't mad at you for killing other cows. If the animals knew stuff like that then the chickens back home definitely wouldn't like you.</em>
</p>
<p>With a deep breath, I pulled the wheat back out. This time, the cows were slower to react. However, after a few seconds, they were rushing forward again. I didn't freak out as the cows bumped into me and pushed past one another to get at the wheat, though none of them actually tried to take it from my hands. It was like they knew I didn't want to give it to them, and so they couldn't have it yet.</p>
<p>I led the cows home and got them into the new pen as the sun set over the distant swamp. I gave two of the cows the wheat I had, and the pair went to work on making a new cow while the third one watched me with sorrowful eyes.</p>
<p>
  <em>Sorry, but I'm not given you wheat to just stand there and get heartbroken. Next time, okay?</em>
</p>
<p>Getting the cows home was a big accomplishment. In time, I'd have a decent-sized herd to provide plenty of food. Unfortunately, the stars were coming out now, and so were the monsters. A skeleton and zombie decided they wanted to keep Sigrid and me from getting inside. Their last mistake. Sigrid quickly sent the archer running while a cut down the zombie. It managed to land a scratch on me, which stung, but I had plenty of food to heal the minor injury. The problem was the same couldn't be said about my tools. I could see the chinks and cracks in my sword and axe. They would need to be replaced soon, which meant either going back to stone tools or going mining again.</p>
<p>I didn't want to do either.</p>
<p>The stone tools were heavier, making them slower at their respective tasks. Plus they were more fragile and wouldn't last nearly as long. The iron tools were all around better.</p>
<p>On the other hand, the iron meant going back into the earth, and after my trip to Morkmun, I dreaded doing that with every fiber of my being. Still, I had to make a choice.</p>
<p>As we got inside the tunnel, my gaze drifted to the gaping mouth in the ground just outside my yard. A chill ran down my spine as the memories of explosions and arrows surfaced in my mind. They were immediately followed by thoughts of my most precious and useful resource; iron. Why did it have to be down there?</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0011"><h2>11. Monster Hunter</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>A new monster appears on the horizon.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>While I did my best to avoid the monsters, I'd nevertheless had plenty of encounters with them over the recent weeks. After each one, I learned a little more. For instance, I picked up on the fact the creepy leaf piles only blew up when they were close to their target. As long as I backed up fast enough after each swing, I could kill the creeper before it blew up. I knew how to make pillars, or to hide around corners to deal with skeletons. I knew the spiders and zombies needed to be dealt with quickly and often head-on.</p>
<p>I thought I knew about all of the monsters of this world, but tonight, something new appeared. I had no idea what it was. All I could see were the two glowing spots of purple as they roamed across the field. I stared at them, and suddenly they were staring back as a broken and fragmented scream tore through the quiet night. The noise was awful and indescribable. It seemed to echo all around me and from within my mind too. A part of me thought only I could hear it. However, as I looked away from the eyes, I saw Sigrid cowering on the ground, covering her ears with her paws.</p>
<p>I looked up in time to see the eyes disappear and a second later they reappeared, along with the entire body, right in front of me. The strange creature towered over me with thin, black legs that stopped just before the top of my head. It had a small body with dark streaks in it and it emitted purple particles. Two arms of near-equal length of the legs hung on either side of its body. Sitting atop the tiny body was a dark head with a giant mouth opened into a terrifying scream that seemed to tear its face apart.</p>
<p>I shrieked, but before I could do anything, the two lengthy arms swung and sent me flying back into my tunnel. I lay on the ground gasping. The single hit hurt almost as much as a creeper explosion. In one hit, my body felt bruised and broken. I assumed this would be the end of me. And if it could teleport, what could I do to stop it? With great effort, I peeled my head off the stone floor to look at the monster, expecting it to be looming over me any second. Turned out, stopping it was easier than I expected. The thing tried to chase after me, but couldn't fit inside. It was too tall. It yelled in frustration and then flinched when Sigrid bit at its leg. Immediately it turned on my pup and swung at her. She yelped and suddenly all of the pain I felt was forgotten.</p>
<p>
  <em>Nobody hurts my dog!</em>
</p>
<p>I jumped to my feet and drew my sword. I swung fast and regained the monster's attention. Its long arms tried to swing at me, but couldn't reach. What a relief. Even though they didn't look like much, those lanky arms could really pack a punch. At least in my tunnel, I was safe. With enough hits, I could surely take care of the monster without any more injuries.</p>
<p>The problem was, I wasn't the only one in this fight. Sigrid charged at the monster and nipped at its ankles again. The monster flinched, and almost immediately swatted at her. She flew back several blocks. Rage welled up in me.</p>
<p>
  <em>How dare he do that a second time!</em>
</p>
<p>However, the rage quickly gave way to fear. Sigrid's tail practically touched the floor. She was hurt bad. I didn't know if she could take another hit. This thing hit hard. Despite the danger, Sigrid's eyes remained fiercely locked onto the monster who had hurt me. For the slight of harming me, she would kill this creature, or die trying.</p>
<p>
  <em>Sigrid, no! Come here! Leave it alone!</em>
</p>
<p>I swung at the monster, regaining its attention, but it didn't go down.</p>
<p>
  <em>How much can this thing take?</em>
</p>
<p>I swung again while begging my friend to listen.</p>
<p>
  <em>Get inside, Girl! Don't bite it!</em>
</p>
<p>She didn't listen. She lunged for another bite as time slowed and my heart stopped. Her teeth met their mark. The monster roared in pain and swung its terrible arms at her. They connected and she flew across the yard. She landed on her side against the fence and didn't get back up.</p>
<p>
  <em>Sigrid!</em>
</p>
<p>I screamed and flung myself at the monster. I hit it and it hit me. I fought through the pain and raised my bruised arm again. I brought it down with all of my might, aiming for the horrible screaming face. The blade connected and the monster fell to the ground. Its body disappeared into a puff of smoke, leaving behind three of the green and yellow orbs. I turned to the fence, but Sigrid was already gone. Her body had vanished like every other animal we'd killed. Only she didn't leave anything behind. It was like she'd never existed at all.</p>
<p>I fell to my knees and dropped the sword on the ground. Tears rolled down my cheeks as sobs wracked my body.</p>
<p>
  <em>Sigrid! I'm sorry! I'm so, so sorry!</em>
</p>
<p>I collapsed forward onto my hands and pounded them against the grass.</p>
<p>
  <em>Don't leave me! Please.</em>
</p>
<p>My chest felt tight. She couldn't be gone, she just couldn't be! What was I supposed to do without her? How could I go on? My body ached and felt too heavy to move. I stayed there for a long time until the pain in my chest gave way to numbness. I was alone again. But I wasn't. A spider shrieked in the distance. A zombie groaned. I wasn't alone. The monsters. They caused this. A growl built in my throat, and I rose to my feet. I picked my sword up off the ground and stared through burning eyes out into the field where the monsters roamed.</p>
<p>My fingers twitched and tightened around the hilt of my sword as my heartbeat pounded in my ears. The pain and tiredness in my limbs dissipated. Why did they get to live when Sigrid didn't? I'd fix that.</p>
<p>I walked out of the light of my yard and into the dark fields, immediately gaining the attention of the local monsters. Spiders raced forward as zombies shambled and skeletons drew their bows.</p>
<p>
  <em>Come and get me.</em>
</p>
<p>I sliced across the spider's face, hitting several of its eyes. It shrieked and flew backward, but came rushing back angrier than ever. It bit at my leg, its fangs piercing my skin I roared and swung wildly until it fell to the ground dead, then I turned on the zombie. I slashed its side as an arrow pierced my own. I whipped around and charged the skeleton archer. It wasn't prepared for the assault and crumbled to dust. The zombie still wanted a piece of me, and I wasn't done with it. In just a few swings, it fell over, and I focused on the next monster to cross paths with me. Monster after monster came at me, and time and time again, I killed them. Some landed hits. Most never got the chance. That didn't deter them. They just kept coming. Every time one fell, I turned and found another. They were relentless.</p>
<p>But so was I.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0012"><h2>12. Passing the Time</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Grief is the worst monster of all.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>I stumbled back into my tunnel as the sun rose. Arrows stuck out of me at every angle, including one just above my eye, cuts ran down my arms over burns from explosions, and puncture wounds covered my legs. Everything hurt and felt numb at the same time. No matter how hard I tried, no matter how many monsters I killed, there were always more. They just kept coming out of nowhere to fight me. I kept fighting all of them until they burned in the sunlight. My rage faded away with the moon, and I was left standing in a field feeling empty.</p>
<p>I killed everything I saw last night. I got my revenge, but I didn't feel any better. My friend was still gone.</p>
<p>As I passed my furnace, my stomach grumbled. I knew food would help with the pain. But I didn't want it. I threw my bedroom door open and slammed it behind me. I dropped on the bed and lay there.</p>
<p>Sleep did not come.</p>
<p>I laid on my side, staring at the spot Sigrid always liked to sleep in, but she wasn't there. She wasn't watching me with expectant eyes. She was gone and I had nothing to remember her by. I rolled onto my back and stared up at the rough rock ceiling trying not to think about how Sigrid was gone, and failing miserably. The harder I tried not to think about it, the more I did. I kept hoping last night wasn't real. That I'd dreamed it all up and any moment now I'd awake to find her watching me, ready to face another day.</p>
<p>But I was awake. The monster had been real. It had killed her. She died defending me.</p>
<p><em>Why did she have to die?</em> <em>I should have done more.</em></p>
<p>When the adrenaline faded away and the exhaustion of the night finally caught up with me, those were the thoughts wandering through my mind.</p>
<p>I slept, if it could be called sleep with all of the tossing and turning, for most of the day. My stomach woke me, and I didn't feel the least bit refreshed. If anything, I felt worse. Though the arrows had vanished, my body still pulsed with pain. My limbs felt heavy, and my heart still ached. I didn't even dream. A part of me hoped I would and would see Sigrid again, but no, and so I wanted to continue to lay there until the end. However, my body had other plans.</p>
<p>I found myself leaving my room and grabbing some food from the furnace. I nibbled at the steak as I stared blankly out into the field, flashes of last night flooding through my mind. There had been so many monsters. My pack was filled with all sorts of items from spider eyes to gunpowder. Any other day and I'd have been excited about having so many new resources. There was too much pain today. Thankfully, with each bite, some of the pain faded from my body. My body was healing, and by the time I finished my meal as the sun began to set, every pain but one had left me. The last one was more stubborn and I knew no amount of food would fix it.</p>
<p>My eyes scanned the outside world once again. The setting sun painted the sky orange and the rest of the world gained a golden color. The fully grown carrots and potato plants swayed in a gentle breeze.</p>
<p>
  <em>I should harvest those. Probably breed the chickens and cows too.</em>
</p>
<p>I went back to my room and closed the door. I slept through the night, haunted by visions of glowing purple eyes. I woke up the next morning, and only left my room to grab another bite to eat around noon. I did the same the next day, and the day after. Soon enough, a week went by. And I hadn't once set foot outside of my tunnel.</p>
<p>On the eighth day, I ran out of food which faced me with a choice. I could stay inside until I starved to death, or I could go back out into the world. Just thinking about going outside seemed to drain me of my energy, and made the thought of starvation more appealing. However, despite how I felt that first night, I didn't want to die. Not really. I just didn't want to be alone.</p>
<p>For the millionth time, I missed Sigrid, and for the first time since she died, I allowed myself to think about her. I remembered the feel of her fur, the sound of her barks, and the happy look on her face. Thinking about her also reminded me of that night. I could hear the growl in her throat as she charged the monster. I could see the determination in her eyes to save me. She died so I could live. Staying inside my room wasn't living. She wouldn't want this for me. She'd want me to go out and explore, to have fun.</p>
<p>Staying in my room dishonored her sacrifice. So, for the first time in a week, I went outside. While my tunnel was open to the world, the air outside my door felt fresher in my lungs. It smelled cleaner. The shade of my hill felt cool, and stepping out into the bright morning sunlight warmed my skin. The simple warmth helped ease the pain I'd been feeling. Each step into the sun became easier. Soon enough, I'd harvested all of my crops and fed the animals. Thankfully, they didn't seem to mind having been neglected for so long. None of them looked worse for wear.</p>
<p>After handling my chores, I simply stood in the field, breathing deep and enjoying the feeling of the sun on my skin. Some of the cows watched me expectantly, waiting for more wheat, but I'd given them everything I had. The herd had grown to be bigger than my current, small little wheat field around my pond could care for, so I set out to make a bigger one. I made a full-sized plot just like I'd seen in the village for wheat beside the pond. This gave it plenty of water and kept it close to the cow pen. I could hear them mooing appreciatively as I spent the day building it.</p>
<p>At night, I munched on a dinner of carrots and baked potatoes and stared out across the field reminiscing. As much as it hurt to think about Sigrid, remembering her actually made me feel better in some strange way. I came to the conclusion I wanted to build something to remember her by. Given my building skills, it wouldn't be very extravagant, but it would help me remember her. With a monument dedicated to Sigrid, I could look at it and remember her forever. I would use diorite for the monument, but after checking my building chest, I came to the unfortunate realization I only had a single block left. I did know where to find more, but I didn't like it.</p>
<p>Morkmun had diorite down there. I didn't want to go down there, but I wouldn't let my fear prevent me from honoring Sigrid's memory. I'd been down there once and lived, and I could do it again. This time, I'd do things differently. I had more experience and resources to use to my advantage. For starters, I had an iron helmet now. I could use all of the leather I gathered from hunting cows to make more armor. That would help keep me safe. plus, I had better tools now. I knew my iron sword was sharper than the stone one I had back then. It cut through the monsters better. I also had a bow this time around and a decent amount of arrows from the other night.</p>
<p>On top of simply having better gear, I knew how to fight, if the other night proved anything. I could handle any monsters who dared come my way, even without my guard dog.</p>
<p>Lastly, I would be smart about going back down there. I'd take things slow, bring plenty of light and food, and build an easy path out. I would not be caught off guard again.</p>
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